The family of Staff Sgt. Edward Pyle held a funeral for him in Augusta, Michigan on July 24.

Courtesy | Scott Rissi

Edward Pyle was buried by his family in August, MI

When Scott Rissi received a phone call from the Army claiming to have the remains of a family member who died during World War II, he thought it was an elaborate scam. 

But that phone call would return Rissi’s great-great uncle, Staff Sgt. Edward Pyle, to his family in Augusta, Michigan, 81 years after his aircraft was shot from the sky.

After the 79th anniversary of V-J Day on Sept. 2, Hillsdale College junior Jihye Kim, who plans to join the U.S. Marine Corps, said it is important to step back and remember the stories of World War II soldiers, especially those who are yet to be returned home.

“It’s awesome that they were able to identify Pyle and bring him home,” Kim said. “The Marines always try to never leave anyone behind, so us carrying that out even 80 years later is incredible.”

Peter Jennings, associate professor of leadership studies at Hillsdale College and U.S. Marine Corps veteran, said the return of a fallen soldier is a comfort to both the U.S. soldiers fighting abroad and their families.

“I’m very proud to know that Staff Sgt. Pyle is no longer missing in action, that we have kept our commitment to leave no one behind, and that he is now home where he belongs,” Jennings said.

On Dec. 1, 1943, Pyle boarded a B-24 Liberator as a tail gunner for the 436th Bombardment Squadron, 7th Bombardment Group. The target was the Insein Railroad Yard in Rangoon, Burma, which is now Myanmar.

In an interview with The Collegian, Rissi said Pyle’s group circled around to return home after destroying the railroad yard. But it soon found itself under heavy fire from Japanese Zeros who came out of the sun, making them nearly invisible.

“They bombed what they believed was their target and as they were departing they came back out towards the ocean where they took anti-aircraft fire to one of the wings of the aircraft,” Rissi said. “They began to descend rapidly into the clouds.”

As Pyle’s plane began to fall out of formation, the pilot of his aircraft signaled what remained of the group to continue without them.

“They drove down into the clouds, and three Japanese Zeros followed them. They were never seen or heard from again,” Rissi said. 

The crew was declared MIA.

Rissi said poor flight conditions prevented the group’s fighter escort from taking off, and the lack of air support left the group vulnerable to the onslaught it received from the Zeros.

According to a historical report written by the Indo-Pacific Directorate of the Defence POW/MIA Accounting Agency, Japanese soldiers soon found the crash site and forced local civilians to bury the bodies of the crew and remove identifying information.

In 1947, two years after the end of World War II, the American Grave Registration Service discovered the remains of eight Americans near the location where a B-24 was suspected to have crashed. The crew’s remains could not be identified due to a lack of information and the fact that DNA testing was not yet possible, according to the DPAA’s report.

After years of identification attempts, Pyle and his crew were labeled “unidentifiable” in 1950.

Following a request from someone who believed their family member was buried in the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii, known as the ‘Punchbowl,’ the DPAA exhumed the remains of several unknowns. 

Pyle, who was buried amongst the unknowns exhumed from the ‘Punchbowl,’ was identified on March 14, 2024.

Rissi said he did not know Pyle or that he never returned from service in World War II.

“My sister got the first phone call, and she thought it was a scam and then she told me about it,” Rissi said. “Then a few days later, I got a phone call. I started asking the guy questions. He said he was from the Army and had the remains of Edward Pyle. I didn’t know who Edward Pyle was. I was very skeptical of the whole thing.”

Rissi only discovered that he was Pyle’s relative when he found an old family tree and recalled someone from the Department of Veterans Affairs contacting his mother for DNA, as well as family history records.

Pyle was returned to his family and was buried amongst fellow servicemembers at the Fort Custer National Cemetery in Augusta, Michigan, on July 24. His name is inscribed on the Wall of the Missing at the Manilla American Cemetery and Memorial.

For Jennings, Pyle’s story reflects America’s commitment to its service members.

“It is a high and noble tradition in our armed forces that we leave no one behind,” Jennings said. “Even years, decades after your service, your country will find you, identify you, and bring you home. This is a great assurance to those who serve — knowing that you will never be forgotten and your service will never be in vain.”